Beware The Buyer Request GOTCHA!!
One of my new Gig Doctor buddies was shocked recently to see his response rate statistics on Fiverr plunge from a shining 100% to a dismal 89% (enough to get you demoted on Fiverr) in just a day or two. How in the world did it happen, and what can be done about it if it occurs? That's what we're going to explore this time.
A Quick Backgrounder
For people who are new to Fiverr, let me clarify a few terms I'm going to mention:
Buyer: Someone who is in need of a product or service on Fiverr
Seller: Someone who offers a product or service on Fiverr
Buyer Request: Refers to a request by someone who needs a service, issued kind of like a classified ad on Fiverr. Any people who offer the service we're in need of can respond with a quote and a message.
Response Rate: How well or poorly you are rated, based on your responses to correspondence you receive from buyers.
Level: There are seller levels you can climb through, from 0, to 1, to 2, to Top Rated. Failing to maintain certain standards can cause you to be demoted a level.
Little Did He Know!
When recent Gig Doctor "patient" Todd Studer recently posted a Buyer Request on Fiverr to have a new logo designed, he got a LARGE number of responses, most of which arrived by the normal notification means, but about 10% of them came instead to his account's inbox as direct messages from the sellers.. Why by two methods? Due to a little workaround used by some sellers, it's possible for them to find out who it was who originally placed the buyer requests, and contact them directly.
Therein lies the rub. What Todd didn't realize is that, while not responding to offers coming through Buyer Requests normal notification method is acceptable, failing to respond to the sellers who managed to find out who he was and send him direct messages counted against him. As a result, about 18 messages he received by that method (and didn't respond to) went against him in his Response Rate. Ouch!
He Who Dies by the Sword...
Fortunately, the old axiom, "He who lives by the sword, dies by the sword," works as well in reverse. Todd, who was threatened with death by the Buyer Request, used that same sword to restore himself to life! He noticed what had happened to him, and promptly issued another Buyer Request, received a bunch of replies, answered them immediately, and boom...he was able to nudge his response numbers back into a safe range again. "It cost him $6, he told me, "but that's cheap compared to the alternative"
What Can We Learn From Todd's Experience?
We can learn two important things from this.
If you receive personal messages from sellers when placing a Buyer Request, be sure to answer them!
If you fail to do so, not realizing until too late what has happened, you potentially can resolve the problem by issuing another Buyer Request or two, and answering any resulting direct inbox messages diligently.
There's so much you and I can do together to improve your gig's performance. Schedule your Gig Doctor appointment by hitting the Gig Checkup link at the top of this page for an inexpensive personalized checkup and consultation!
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